Chapter 56 "If he likes it, I'll give it to him."...
On the first day of the group stage, there were two highly anticipated matches: the fateful showdown between HYG and CG, and Angel Team, a team with two current or former professional players who had just won the Streamer Cup, facing off against a real league team.
With eight teams competing on the same day, Nan Zhiyi felt like she had entered a vegetable market as soon as she entered the rest room.
They shared a lounge with the WD team today. Song Baiyu was originally standing with his hands on his hips, scolding the youth training team members. But when he arrived, they immediately looked at him as if they had seen a savior.
"I'm fucking going crazy." He lowered his voice and complained to Nan Zhiyi, "Have you ever seen a newly crowned champion support get this kind of treatment?! Huh? -- Leading trainees in a tournament, and there are three of them at that! I'm just a support, what can I do? Can I just rush in and kill both of the enemy's carries in two hits?"
"The youth storm is one thing, but these young people also don't listen to orders. You tell them not to step in when they shouldn't, and they give you a 'I have my own rhythm'!"
As Song Baiyu spoke, he glanced back and looked like he was about to explode with anger.
Nan Zhiyi followed his gaze and saw a tall, burly player wearing a WD team uniform, whose face seemed to say, "I am the greatest of all."
He chuckled twice, looked away, and said affectionately to Song Baiyu, "Thank you for your hard work."
Song Meng came in at this moment and saw a loose thread sticking out of nowhere in Song Baiyu's hair. He casually picked it out for him and asked, "How about it? Ready to keep aiming for the championship?"
Song Baiyu rolled his eyes: "Not getting shut out in the group stage is a success."
After saying that, he asked, "And you? Where are you planning to fight to?"
Song Meng glanced at Nan Zhiyi and gave her a "he's in charge" look. Then Song Baiyu turned to Nan Zhiyi again.
Nan Zhiyi suddenly felt a sense of pressure: "Our, uh, our goal is..."
"Our goal is to win the championship."
You Xin walked past, tossing down a casual remark, and took the bag Nan Zhiyi was carrying, placing it on the sofa next to her along with her own backpack.
His voice wasn't loud, but it was just loud enough for everyone in the room to hear.
The three WD trainees couldn't contain their expressions, their mouths agape as they looked at each other. Song Baiyu's jaw practically dropped to the floor.
"Damn...that's really good, really awesome. Really arrogant." After a long while, Song Baiyu slowly raised his thumb.
"I'm increasingly feeling that finding a good teammate is harder than finding a good partner," he said to Nan Zhiyi with envy. "Look at yours."
He then turned to look at the three oddly shaped people behind him: "Take a look at mine now."
Nan Zhiyi: "…………"
Just then, the coach called from behind, "Bai Yu! Come here for a second." Song Bai Yu's face immediately fell again, and he lamented, "I want to die." He patted Nan Zhi Yi's shoulder and left.
-
Tonight, their match against NJ is scheduled as the third game at 8 PM, while the opening match is CG vs. HYG.
The large screen in the lounge was showing live footage of the match. To put it nicely, it was a back-and-forth battle between the two teams; to put it bluntly, it was a battle of culinary kings.
After watching the series of events—xww losing his most valuable equipment due to his insanity, HYG's incompetent command leading the team to feed, and wind inexplicably losing his resurrection point, resulting in the team's inability to resurrect—and the final team fight where HYG lost their point first and two players were overturned, Nan Zhiyi felt a headache coming on. It was as if she had returned to watching CG matches in the Spring Split of 2023.
Of the eight people on the field, it seems difficult to find a human among them, apart from Milk.
Although Nan Zhiyi no longer needs to worry about CG's performance (if negative worries don't count), HYG, which seems to be the team's future main force, still causes concern: the off-carry soso doesn't seem to follow commands, the tank player always has his own ideas during team fights, and the support is a rather talented rookie, but doesn't seem to be able to keep the team's seniors in check. This is precisely why the team's performance has declined, similar to the situation Song Baiyu mentioned earlier.
After watching the next match, where the newly crowned champion support player Pigeon led the youth storm to a crushing defeat against the sixth-ranked team, Nan Zhiyi no longer had time to worry about her future team.
Staff came in and told them to prepare for their entrance. The league venue has a player tunnel, and players have to high-five the fans on both sides before going on stage, so the players of a team go on stage separately in turn.
Nan Zhiyi looked down at the tips of her shoes and forced a smile to avoid looking bad under the spotlight.
Suddenly, his hand, which was hanging by his side, was gently grasped.
Nan Zhiyi turned around. You Xin, who was following behind him, nodded to him and mouthed something to him.
At this moment, the staff gestured for him to come on stage. Nam Ji-yi took a deep breath, smiled, and walked out of the contestant passage, reaching out to high-five and greet the fans on both sides of the passage.
Whether it was his imagination or not, his fans seemed unusually enthusiastic today.
But this did not alleviate his nervousness. Even after everyone was seated on the stage, he remained tense, constantly flipping through his notebook, until—
"Actually, I originally thought they would come out today wearing rings like in the promotional photos." The commentator's teasing words were clearly heard by everyone before the players on stage even put on their headphones. "I think that scene would be very imposing - imagine, two people standing in the middle of the stage, each with an FMVP ring on their hand, the opponents would feel immense pressure just seeing that."
Nan Zhiyi: "...?"
A ring? What ring?
FMVP... a ring?
"I don't even want to call you out on it. Do you really think that's what you call domineering?" another commentator said. "That ring is so big, wearing it on your hand will definitely affect your operation. Besides, have you ever seen anyone wear a huge diamond ring they bought for their wedding all day long? That's only used for taking pictures, it's a symbol, okay?"
Nan Zhiyi: "??????"
Was he too nervous today? Why can't he understand what these people are saying?
However, there was no extra time left for him to think. After adjusting the peripherals, the competition was about to begin.
Team AQ ranked fifth in the league this year, making them a genuine playoff team. Among the players who appeared, the secondary carry and support were players from the second team.
At this moment, during the draft phase, the two teams seemed to present a stark contrast: behind the AQ players, the head coach was pacing back and forth, while behind the Angels team, there was no one except the referee.
The commentator seemed to notice this as well: "Oh? Angela Italiana... doesn't have a coach?"
"Yes, I watched the entire Angel Yi team's match in the Juxing Cup. It seems that their draft picks and bans were all done by the team members together," another commentator added. "I think the decision-maker is Angel Yi, the captain. He always carries a small notebook in his hand, just like other coaches, when he goes on the field."
"Today's match is a best-of-one (BO1), so there's a lot of unpredictability. Either side could win. Especially with the recent release of the 'Inside Out' map in patch 7.2.7, we wonder if they'll get to play that map in this match. Which team will ultimately emerge victorious? Let's wait and see!"
Two weeks ago, the ROE official team suddenly released an announcement that the game is expected to launch a new map in May, increasing the number of maps from five to six.
It's been almost two years since ROE last updated its map, and many players are eagerly anticipating the new map. However, this is often the most challenging time for the training teams of various teams: a new map means significant version changes, and they must collect match data on the new map, develop various strategies, try them one by one, and finally develop a completely new playstyle.
Changes mean both opportunities and challenges; only the teams that adapt the fastest can seize the initiative.
The new map, "The Inner and Outer Worlds," is quite unique. If the previous four maps could be divided into long-range and short-range maps, then the characteristics of this map are quite obvious: in the game, the terrain on the map will change over time, and the change will occur when the last digit of the minute changes to "7".
This is a map that combines long and short arms; any previous experience will no longer be applicable to this map.
During the map selection process, the countdown ended, and the final result was displayed on the screen—[Sky City].
The commentator said with a hint of regret, "It's not a new map! Looks like everyone's going to be disappointed..."
In today's opening match between CG and HYG, I also drew the Sky City card.
AQ immediately picked the Archer, and after a moment's thought, Nan Zhiyi instructed Xiaoyu to choose the Ranger.
Before making a decision, he asked You Xin, "Are you sure you can do it?"
The Ranger is a newly released class that was recently launched and is currently in its initial launch period, with high stats across the board. Its mechanics involve switching between two weapons, allowing it to handle both long and short ranged attacks, making it quite difficult to master.
Those who know how to play carry the team to victory; those who don't are just ATMs.
"Take it." You Xin gave only one word in response.
Nan Zhiyi then took out the [Pastor].
In recent years, due to severe nerfs, Nan Zhiyi has rarely used this class in the game.
But recently, with the version update, the designers seemed to have suddenly remembered this version's discarded character and drastically changed its base stats, instantly elevating the Priest from the bottom tier to a T0.5 level class.
Not playing doesn't mean you can't play. Nan Zhiyi tried it out in ranked matches twice and found that she still had a good feel for the role—no wonder she was once ranked number one in the Asian server as a support player.
"Hmm... Angels' draft strategy after returning to the normal carry/support positions emphasizes 'following the meta,' playing whoever is strong." The commentator analyzed, "Of course, being able to keep up with the meta is also a skill, requiring a broad skill pool."
"The pastor has been away from the competition stage for a long time. According to the data provided by the director, the last time he appeared on the stage was 587 days ago."
"At the same time, our player Yux has been away from the competition for quite some time now. It's almost impossible to say that leaving the training environment has no impact on a player. It's just that only Yux himself knows exactly how big that impact is... I wonder what kind of performance he will deliver today?"
"It seems that, at least his teammates, trust him wholeheartedly."
Compared to roles like the Bard who primarily limit the opponent's performance, the Priest's healing and speed-up skills are more effective on friendly characters.
Anyone familiar with this profession can see that Angels are betting on their main carry player, yux, in this match—the entire team is more or less choosing roles around him, and the support player is a close-protecting role.
However, in just fifteen minutes, yux used this newly launched profession to deliver his own answer to the audience and his teammates.
Three minutes into the game, the Ranger and Priest duo aggressively invaded the enemy's resource island, taking down two opponents in a 2v3 situation.
Ten minutes later, in a skirmish on the neutral island, the Ranger secured two more kills.
In fourteen minutes, the Rangers' economy had surged to the top of the entire game. This was largely due to his teammates allocating a significant amount of resources to him.
At this moment, the Ranger was no different from a serial killer to the four AQ members on the other side.
If you encounter an enemy without an archer present, even if there are two or more opponents, you can only run away and hide.
Compared to archers, rangers have a more flexible movement mechanism. Once they gain a significant economic lead, yux's individual characteristics become extremely prominent in the game—as the main carry, he charges to the front, even faster than the team's tanks and supports, relying solely on jumping and positioning to dodge enemy damage.
Nan Zhiyi had to max out all her movement speed buffs in order to keep up with the opponent's speed by controlling the priest, who had short legs.
As the twenty minutes drew to a close, the situation on the field gradually became tense.
At the 20-minute mark, a battle for the vital resource, the Wing Ring, will erupt on the neutral island at the very center and lowest point of the map.
The winning side will not only receive a treasure chest, but also a five-minute low-altitude flight buff that is extremely important for the map's terrain.
But at this crucial moment, Yu Xin did not maneuver his character to retreat to the vicinity of the neutral island.
He maintained his high vantage point, standing on the third level of the bridge from the bottom up, what players commonly call the level 3 bridge, gazing down into the distance.
Meanwhile, the priest had already retreated to the second-level bridge via the resource island.
"Hmm... what is Yux trying to do? Is he trying to exploit the height difference?" The commentator analyzed the situation thoughtfully.
Due to the gravity settings in ROE, for both archers, the range of an arrow shot from bottom to top is slightly shorter than that shot from top to bottom.
"But at this distance, the archers should still be able to reach him... Wait, what is he trying to do?! He jumped!!!"
A collective gasp erupted from the audience in the stadium.
To everyone's surprise, Yux, controlling the Ranger, suddenly jumped off the Level 3 Bridge!
At this moment, the four members of AQ were positioned with the archer and support standing on the level 2 bridge, the secondary DPS tank on the neutral island, and the remaining three members of the Angel team in the middle. Yux's jump clearly indicated that he was aiming to cut off the archer and support's retreat!
The time it takes to jump from the third-level bridge to the second-level bridge is about three seconds, just enough for the ranger to fire two arrows after charging his bow. Yux also drew his bow in mid-air. The first arrow landed near the archer's feet as he moved to dodge, and the second arrow hit him right in the body!
The archer's health dropped to half, at which point the ranger landed heavily in front of him, completely blocking his path.
Yux took a fall attack, reducing his health to two-thirds, but that was insignificant to him at the moment.
Sheathing the bow, drawing the sword, and slashing at the opponent—all in one fluid motion.
[Ranger] ANY.Yux has killed [Archer] AQ.Choo!
The entire operation takes no more than seven seconds.
Even the commentators were stunned, and it took them a while to find their voices: "...My God!! Yux just pulled off an almost impossible maneuver!!!"
AQ lost their archer, their core carry, and instantly became a headless swarm. Their two secondary tanks were killed while surrounded by the other three members of the Angel team, and their support was relentlessly pursued by yux.
The newcomer faced such immense pressure on his first appearance, and perhaps due to excessive nervousness, he lost his footing while fleeing and fell straight off the bridge!
Seeing this, the commentator couldn't help but sigh: "This... although it's a basic mistake, it doesn't actually have much impact on the battle. It's already a situation where certain death is inevitable."
Wow, is the pressure really that high?
[Aren't you feeling much pressure facing Yux?]
[Fun fact: This player's win rate against Yux in individual games after joining AQ is 0%. Note that this is his win rate in individual games.]
Is it that the league teams are too weak or Yux is too strong?
[We agreed that winning even one game would be considered a victory! ^ ^]
At 25 minutes, with a kill score of 12-4, Angels easily defeated their opponent AQ, destroying the enemy respawn point and eliminating all members, securing victory in this BO1 match.
"Congratulations to Angel Team on their victory!" As the victory screen appeared, the commentator took a deep breath and exclaimed, "Well, comparing Yux's performance in the previous Star Cup with this match, I only have five words to say—"
Another commentator chimed in, "Just kidding!!!"
Nan Zhiyi took off her headphones and let out a long sigh of relief.
Looking at the victory screen in front of him, he suddenly felt that all the tension he had felt today was unnecessary, so unnecessary that it was almost laughable—what could have been the reason that he didn't trust the person who got the main carry position and whose ID was yux?
Compared to other games on the market, in non-top-tier matches, outstanding individual skill can sometimes shine brighter than teamwork. This also depends on how the game's economy is acquired: after obtaining chests, players can freely allocate their resources.
This doesn't mean that teamwork isn't important in the game; it just means that sometimes, when a team is so far behind that they need to go all in, and the teammates have confidence in the main carry, they might choose to give all the resources to the main carry.
This is probably why, among all positions, the main carry's annual salary is significantly higher than that of the others.
Yux is the kind of player whose teammates can trust him wholeheartedly and who can carry the entire team on his own.
-
After securing their first victory, the atmosphere in the team's locker room was much more lively than before the start of the season.
BO1's interview was a one-on-one interview, so the task of being interviewed naturally fell to You Xin.
The staff had written the interview questions on cards beforehand. Nam Ji-yi unwrapped a piece of chocolate and curiously leaned over to look at it.
His gaze fell on the last line, and then he froze—
[Question 6: When the promotional photos were taken, your FMVP ring appeared on your teammate Angel's hand. Was there any special purpose in choosing this pose?]
Nan Zhiyi: "...?"
Nan Zhiyi: "???"
He was dumbfounded.
"F...FMVP ring?" After a long pause, Nan Zhiyi finally spoke with some difficulty, "That white ring from that day, the one with your name on it...was it the FMVP ring???"
You Xin looked up at him and looked away from the card.
“It was with CG before, but they gave it back to me recently,” he said. “I thought it looked nice, so I let you wear it. You’re not angry, are you?”
Nan Zhiyi was taken aback by his question: "Uh, I'm not angry."
You Xin smiled and said, "Okay. That's good."
That evening, all the esports marketing accounts that were keen on generating traffic simultaneously released a clip.
In the post-match MVP interview, when asked why his FMVP ring appeared on his teammate's hand in the promotional photo, You Xin raised the microphone and generously said, "He liked it, so I gave it to him."
【………………】
【?? Your regular live streams aren't enough for you guys to show off, are they? ? ? 】
[I'm telling you guys, aren't you overacting a bit?]
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